This invention relates to a stabilizer bar for a vehicle, and more particularly, the invention relates to a stabilizer bar having a cross-sectional shape for better enduring stresses in that particular cross-sectional area.
Stabilizer bars for vehicles are increasingly being required to withstand higher loads and stresses. Stabilizer bars are typically formed from a bar having a circular cross-section. The bar is bent into the required shape for the particular vehicle application. For higher load and stress areas, the thickness along the entire length of the bar may be increased. However, much of the stabilizer bar experiences a lower load and stress and therefore the increased bar thickness is unnecessary along much of the length of the bar. Alternatively, the thickness of the bar has been increased in the area of the higher loads and stresses. But, only a circular cross-section has been used in the thicker area of the bar. By using stabilizer bars having only circular cross-sections, unnecessary weight and costs is added to the bar. That is, a circular cross-section is not necessarily the most effective shape for enduring the loads and stresses in the particular area. Accordingly, what is needed is a stabilizer bar having a variable cross-section designed to better endure the loads and stresses in the particular area.